The area under the Tribal Sub Plan in
Maharashtra is 50,757 sq. Kms. as against the total Geographical area of 3,07,313 sq.Kms.
of the State. This works out to about 16.5 percent of the geographical area of the State.
The comparative figures of the State’s population and the tribal population in the last
four decades censuses are given below :-

The concept of drawing up a
T.S.P accounting for all the flows of funds invested in the I.T.D.P. was started from
1975-76. Subsequently, the terms T.S.P and I.T.D.P. were used inter-changeably and the
I.T.D.Ps were often referred to as T.S.P Areas.

Procedure for formulating the
T.S.P :- The procedure followed in the State up-to 1992-93 for the formulation
of the T.S.P of the State was briefly that the Planning Department used to
allocate plan outlays to different administrative departments. The department
in turn, used to carve out outlays for T.S.P. as per their own discretion and
priorities. The concerned departments were also deciding which of the schemes,
programmes and development works were to be taken up from the funds set aside
for the T.S.P. There was, therefore, a feeling that the T.S.P. was merely an
amalgam of the State Plan Schemes taken up in the tribal areas and emphasis
was given mainly on the arithmetical figures of expenditure rather than on
identifying schemes really benefiting tribals. There was no attempt to
formulate the schemes in consultation with Tribal area project administration.
Consequently, adequate investment was not made in the Tribal areas,
particularly on the human resource development side. The level of illiteracy
and poverty is still much more among the tribals (as compared to the general)
population of the State.

Keeping in views the above problems and shortcomings
in the formulation of the T.S.P., the State Government took up this issue with
the State Planning Board before the commencement of the Eighth Five-Year Plan.
The State Planning Board appointed a Sub-Committee in January 1991, under the
Chairmanship of Shri. D.M. Sukthankar, a member of the Board and former Chief
Secretary of the State, to study the question. The Sub-Committee submitted its
report in June, 1992, According to the recommendations in this report, which
was accepted by the State Government, the Planning Department now communicates
a plan ceiling to the Tribal Development Department for the formulation of the
T.S.P. The responsibility for finalizing the T.S.P., within the ceiling so
indicated, rests with the Tribal Development Department and not with the
Administrative Departments, as was the previous practice. The outlays for
different schemes are now to be finally decided by the Tribal Development
Department, keeping in view the actual benefits accruing to the tribal people.
The schemes are now being scrutinized very carefully by the Tribal Development
Department and notional outlays not directly beneficial to the tribals. i.e.,
outlays on State Transport, High Tension Transmission lines, etc. are not
being permitted to be include in the T.S.P.

ATSP / MADA / MINI-MADA

There are in all 47 Scheduled tribes in the state. The main tribes in
Maharashtra are the Bhills, the Gonds, the Mahadeo Kolis, the Pawras, the Thakurs and the
Varlis. There are three tribes Viz the Kolams (Yavatmal District), the Katkaris (mainly in
Thane and Raigad Districts) and the Madia Gonds (Gadchiroli District). Which have been
notified as Primitive Tribes by the Government of India.

There are 35 Districts in the State and the tribal population
is largely concentrated in the western hilly Districts of Dhule, Nandurbar,
Jalgaon, Nashik and Thane (Sahyadri Region) and the eastern fores Districts of
Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Bhandara, Gondiya, Nagpur, Amravati and Yavatmal (Gondwana
Region).

As directed by the Government of India, in 1975-76 the villages
where more than 50 Percent of the population was tribal , were constituted
into Integrated Tribal Development Projects (I.T.D.Ps.). There were 16 such
Government of India approved I.T.D.Ps. Subsequently, the villages where the
tribal population was only marginally less than 50 Percent were also
constituted into additional I.T.D.Ps., and these were called the Additional
Tribal Sub Plan (ATSP) Blocks/ Projects. There were 4 such State Government
approved ATSP projects, latter taking in to consideration the scattered
population of tribals in other areas and the educational institutions being
run there, I.T.D.Ps, were also sanctioned for Mumbai, Aurangabad and Akola.
Consequently, making a total of 23 I.T.D.Ps, in the State, there were 23
Project Officers (P.O) in-charge of these I.T.D.Ps, in 1992, in view of the
deaths in the Jawhar- Mokhada area of Thane District and the need to give
closer attention to health, nutrition and employment, issue the tribal areas
of Thane District was divided into three I.T.D.Ps, instead of two, thus at
present, there are 24 I.T.D.Ps., with 24 Project Officers in-charge of these
I.T.D.Ps.

In the meantime, the Government of India in recognition of the
fact that there were some small concentrations of tribal population just
outside the I.T.D.Ps., directed that in a group of villages having a
population of about 10,000, if more than 50 Percent were tribals, the villages
should be brought under the Modified Area Development Approach (MADA).
Similarly, if two or three villages having a total population of 5,000 if more
than 50 Percent were tribals, the same should be constituted into a clusters/
Mini MADA. In Maharashtra, there are 43 MADA Pockets and 24 Mini MADA/
Clusters. There is still considerable overlap between the ATSP and the MADA
and Mini MADA/ Clusters.